Prime Minister Stephen Harper used the opportunity of his first appearance before the United Nations’ General Assembly in four years to burnish Canada’s reputation as a global leader while sidestepping issues of terrorism, Ebola and climate change that have preoccupied the international body in recent weeks.

NEW YORK — Prime Minister Stephen Harper used the opportunity of his first appearance before the United Nations’ General Assembly in four years to burnish Canada’s reputation as a global leader while sidestepping issues of terrorism, Ebola and climate change that have preoccupied the international body in recent weeks.

“Today, there are many embattled parts of the world where the suffering of local populations and the threats to global security deserve our urgent attention,” Harper told the chamber. “There are, however, other areas of service to humanity.”

Harper’s speech largely focused on a program he described as “the one closest to my heart,” namely the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Initiative. The Canadian-led project was established in 2010 during a meeting of world leaders in Muskoka and has raised more than $7 billion to help end preventable deaths of mothers and their children. Canada is also a major supporter of the UN’s Every Woman, Every Child initiative.

Harper urged UN members to sustain the project’s momentum. “Saving the lives of the world’s most vulnerable mothers, infants and children must remain a top global priority,” he said, adding that Canada will support the World Bank’s Global Financing Facility for Every Woman, Every Child with $100 million in funds.

Beyond this project, though, the prime minister also sketched a decidedly commercial blueprint for how the world should respond to problems of poverty, disparity, terrorism and war. International free trade, the elimination of trade barriers, and the free flow of capital offer a better path to long-term prosperity, equality, freedom and world peace, he said.

Some commentators expected Harper to refer to concerns about Islamic State terrorism in the Middle East, Russian intervention in Ukraine and the spread of the Ebola virus in Africa, but he only touched on such issues in generalized terms. Canada, he said, “has always been ready and willing to join with other civilized peoples and to challenge affronts to international order, affronts to human dignity itself, such as are present today in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and many parts of Africa.”

Opposition spokesmen gave a nod of approval to Harper’s support for the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Initiative, and even went so far as to acknowledge that he’d presented a friendly image of Canada to the world.

However, they also said the UN speech was presented with a pending election campaign in mind.

“It was a speech for a Canadian audience rather than a world audience,” said Liberal foreign affairs critic Marc Garneau. However, he also said it was a “good speech” given Harper’s focus on the health initiative. On that score, at least, “Canadians can be proud.”

The Liberal MP said he hoped the prime minister’s speech signalled that the Conservatives are willing to re-engage with the UN after slighting it for so long.

NDP foreign affairs critic Paul Dewar likewise acknowledged the positive aspects of Harper’s speech, but he, too, regarded the UN appearance as “a backdrop for the purposes of an election.”

Moreover, said Dewar, the prime minister missed the opportunity to present a more comprehensive vision of Canadian foreign policy in such areas as arms control, the environment and nuclear non-proliferation.

Harper certainly used the opportunity of his UN appearance to promote Canada as soft-power player on the international stage.

“There is more to peace than the absence of war,” he said. “The growth of trade between nations, and the delivery of effective development assistance to ordinary people — simple, practical aid — these are the things that have become the signatures of our government’s outreach in the world. Trade means jobs, growth and opportunities.

“We have it in our power to create a better kind of world for our children than we have today,” Harper concluded.

On Wednesday, Harper said the Obama administration had asked that Canada expand its role in Iraq and the request is under consideration.

According to a report by CBC News late Thursday, the federal cabinet will discuss next week the possible deployment of CF-18 fighter jets in the campaign against ISIL.

Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird, who was also in New York Thursday, said any expansion of Canada’s role in the war against Islamic State that would involve direct combat such as airstrikes would be brought to Parliament for a vote.

“We just got a request from the U.S., which the PM outlined and we’ll obviously look at it, reflect on it and then make a decision,” he said, pointing out that Canada has already provided airlifts to bring in munitions as well as financial support.

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.